Obesity and Sports Injuries

Being of large physical size is often desirable and even necessary in many sports. However, increased body mass has been shown to be associated with musculoskeletal injury in the general population (Anandacoomarasamy et al., Int J Obes 32(2):211–222, 2008). So in the context of sport, what happens to the body when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object? The purpose of this chapter is to explore the relationship between obesity and sports injuries. The chapter explores the definition of obesity and how it relates to sports, the rate of obesity in sport and the corresponding injury rate, the mechanism of injury and the resultant injury patterns typically seen, and the challenges of managing injuries in obese patients. In addition, the impact of sports injuries on the development of obesity is discussed.